Fruit pitter



July 30, 1940. (3, w ASHLOCK, JR 2,209,305

FRUIT PITTER Original Filed Jan. 8, 1938 F1E l I INVENTOR George WAsh/bcATTORNEY Patented July 30, 1940 UNITED STATES FRUIT PITTER George W.Ashiock, In, Oakland, Calif.

Original application January 8, 1938, Serial No. 184,007, now Patent No.2,157,518, dated May 9, 1939. Divided and this application March 10,1939, Serial No. 260,968

5 Claims.

This invention relates to a fruit pitting mechanism, and particularly toa mechanism for stoning cherries. The present application is a divisionof my application Serial Number 184,007 filed January 8, 1938, nowPatent Number 2,157,- 518 of May 9, 1939.

The present invention will be particularly described as applied to thestoning of cherries. However, it will be obvious to one skilled in theart that my invention can be used advantageously with other fruits, forexample, apricots and olives.

In cherry stoning machines of the character with which we are hereinconcerned it is desirable that the cherry be held accurately in positionduring entrance of the knife, during cutting and ejection of the pit,and during removal of the knife so that the cherry is cut to a minimum.Now while the stoning of cherries is an old art, it has been heretoforecharacterized by.

relatively slow speed operations, cherries having even been stoned byhand. The present invention is concerned with provision of a cherrycarrier or receptacle structure of such a nature that the cherry is heldfirmly and accurately by a relatively simple, rugged, and yetinexpensive device to the end that cherries can be. stoned rapidly,accurately, and with minimum cutting and alteration in the appearance ofthe cherry.

It is in general the broad object of the present invention to provide animproved and novel fruit carrier of the character heretofore described.

As a result of an extended investigation of various structures, I foundthat it was possible to hold a cherry in position while it was stoned sothat the knife merely cut the cherry and ejected the pit and did notturn the cherry. The structure provided to attain this includes a rigidbase plate faced with a heavy facing of a resilient material; theresilient material is so mounted on the base plate as to providesupportv for the fruit undergoing pitting and, at the same time, topermit ready, positive removal of the stone.

The invention includes additional objects and features of advantage,some of which, together I with the foregoing, will appear hereinafterwherein the present preferred embodiment of the in-- vention isdisclosed. It will be understood that the form of the mechanismdisclosed is only that presently preferred and that within the scope ofthe appended claims various other embodiments may be adopted.

In the drawing accompanying and forming a part hereof Figure 1 is a planview of the fruit carrier of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a section taken along the line 22 of Figure 1, while Figures3 and 4 are sections taken respectively along the lines 3-3 and 4-4 inFigure 1.

The fruit carrier of the present invention comprises a structuregenerally indicated at It and adapted to be mounted between oppositeconveyor chains (not shown) after the manner disclosed in myaforementioned patent. The conveyor chains are moved to convey fruit,for example, to the fruit pitting mechanism as is disclosed in my saidpatent. Each carrier is made up of a flat metal plate or a base plate ofrelatively rigid material, this plate being indicated at 2|. Angles l8are attached by bolts I! at each end of the plate so that each plate 2|can be positioned between the opposite conveyor chains, the anglescarrying apertures 20 to facilitate the attachment to the chains. 1

The plate 2| is apertured as at 22 and usually a plurality of theseapertures are provided centrally across the plate. The apertures arepreferably circular in cross section, but their form can be varied solong as it does not interfere with the functioning of the cherry stoningmechanism or the stone ejection.

The base plate 2| acts as a carrier plate in conjunction with a surfacefacing or coating of the resilient material 23 such as rubber, "duprene,neoprene, thiokol," or the like. This resilient material is preferablyintegrally bonded to the face of the metal according to methods wellknown in the art. It is highly desirable that the junction between theresilient material and the metal be substantially an integral one, orelse what amounts functionally to an integral bonding if the resilientmaterial is to act suitably and position and retain the cherriesaccurately during the subsequent stoning operation. This bonding orintegral is not to be compared with the mere positioning of a rubber cupor insert, into an aperture in the metal plate which is shown in someprior art patents such as the Glaser British Patent 16,374 of 1907,because in thistype of structure suitable support will not be providedfor the rubber and the cherry will not be maintained accurately inposition during the stoning operation. 50

The rubber resilient facing sheet 23 is flat on its upper.face so thatwhen a plurality of the carrier structures ware assembled close together.on the conveyor chain they form a flat continuous work surface when thechains are run substan- 55 tially horizontally. The only depressionformed in the surface of the carrier is that provided by the cup-likereceptacles 24, which receive the fruit as in Figure 3, wherein knife 26is shown as descending to eject the pit in the cherry. Each receptaclehas the aperture or passage 25 therein through whichthe cherry stonepasses for ejection.

Each receptacle is slotted as at 21 and the adjacent portion of theresilient member 23 is also slotted. This slot has two advantages. Firstof all it has a mechanical advantage in permitting the use of knives orsaws so that, subsequent to the pitting operation, the fruit can be cutin half. It also permits the resilient member to flex suitably whereby,.during the stoning operation, the rubber flexes inwardly slightly andretains the fruit accurately in position so that the fruit does notturn. This function in the resilient facing is also presentindependently of the slots 21 because of the projective resilientportion 29 adjacent passage 25 which flexes and permits the side wallsof the entire receptacle to engage the fruit surface as the knife entersand engages the stone,

. It is also to be noted that the resilient member is bonded to theplate 2! adjacent to the area of each aperture 22, this bonding beingparticularly indicated by numeral 28. This provides a suitablesupportfor the extending portion 29 which forms the bottom of the receptacleand surrounds the passage 25.

I am aware that it has heretofore been proposed to provide rubber beltshaving receptacles for fruit, but these I have found unsuitable for highspeed, rapid stoning operations because they did not permit positioningof the fruit in an accurate manner, nor accurate retention of the fruit.Further, they were subject to a high rate of wear. Rubber inserts inmetal plates I havepreviously discussed. It has also been proposedtomount the rubber cups between metal plates, but this has provenunsatisfactory because, for example, the structure could not beadequately cleaned, and, at the same time, adequate support for therubber cups could not be provided to permit of rapid and repeatedflexing to retain the fruit. In one such commercial device, employingseparate rubber cups, the life of the cups is about one week. Thestructure of this invention has a life, under the same conditions, offrom eight to ten weeks.

It is to be noted that while the rubber receptacle herein flexesslightly to grip a positioned cherry and hold it in position, a typicalcommercial device employing rubber cups is subject to the objection thatits receptacles flex so much that the pit is squeezed from the cherryand the side walls split. The receptacle 24 must grip but not squeezeand compress the fruit.

It is also to be noted that each aperture 22 and the rubber banding 28provide a passage of less diameter than the cherry. This ensuresrigidity to the end that the knife 26 does not merely depress the fruitin the cup without pitting it. One commercial device is subject to thisfailure; it is a serious one since it permits unpitted cherries to pass.The receptacles can be made in various sizes to suit various sizecherries.

I am aware of U. S. Patent 2,092,956 of September 14, 1937.

I claim:

1. In a fruit stoning device of the character described, a fruit holdercomprising a substantially flat rigid base plate having a plurality ofspaced apertures therein of generally circular crosssection, and asubstantially flat rubber sheet substantially integrally bonded to aface of said rigid base plate and having tubular portions projectinginto the said apertures and being bonded to the walls of said apertures,said rubber sheet having a plurality of cup like receptacles formed inthe outer face thereof, each receptacle being substantially alignedvertically over one of said apertures, each receptacle being aperturedadjacent the bottom thereof topass a fruit stone ejected from fruit inthe receptacle.

2. In a fruit stoning device of the character described, a fruit holdercomprising a substantially fiat rigid base plate having a plurality ofspaced apertures therein of generally circular cross-section, and asubstantially flat' rubber Sheet substantially integrally bonded to aface of said rigid base plate and to those portions of said plateproviding said apertures, said rubber sheet having a plurality of cuplike receptacles formed in the outer face thereof, each receptacle beingsubstantially aligned vertically over one of said apertures, eachreceptacle being apertured'adjacent the bottom thereof to pass a fruitstone ejected from fruit in the receptacle, said rubber sheet having aslot cut in the outer face of said sheet and transversely to thelongitudinal axis of said sheet, each cut extending centrally throughone of said receptacles and to only about the bottom of said onereceptacle.

3. In a fruit stoning device of the character described, a fruit holdercomprising a substantially fiat rigid base plate having anaperturetherein of generally circular cross-section, and a substantially'fiatrubber sheet substantially integrally bonded to a face of said rigidbase plate and having a tubular portion projecting into the saidaperture and being bonded to the walls of said aperture, said rubbersheet having a cup like receptacle formed in the outer face thereof,said receptacle being substantially aligned vertically over saidaperture, said receptacle being apertured substantially integrallybonded to a faceof said rigid base plate, said rubber sheet havingflanges at its outer sides covering the sides of said base plate andintegrally bonded thereto, said rubber sheet also having a plurality ofcup like receptacles formed in the outer face thereof, each receptaclebeing substantially aligned vertically over one of said apertures, eachreceptacle being apertured adjacent the bottom thereof to pass a fruitstone ejected from fruit in the receptacle.

5. In a fruit stoningdevice of the character described a fruit holdercomprising a substantially flat rigid base plate having a plurality ofspaced apertures therein of generally circular cross-section and asubstantially flat rubber sheet substantially integrally bonded to aface of said rigid base plate, said rubber sheet having flanges at itsouter sides covering the longitudinal sides of said base plate andintegrally bonded thereto, said rubber sheet also having a plurality ofcup like receptacles formed in the outer face thereof, each receptaclebeing substantially aligned vertically over one of said apertures, eachreceptacle being apertured adjacent the bottom thereof to pass a fruitstone ejected from fruit in the receptacle.

GEORGE W. ASHLOCK, JR.

